Clutch



May 21', 1946. N EVlN 2,400,835

CLUTCH Original Filed June 5, 1942 INVEN TOR, NILS D. LEVIN,

HTT'Y.

Patented ay 1, M46

CLUTCH Nils D. Levin, Columbu to The .Ileifreyl Manufacturing assignments,

s, Ohio, assignor, by mesne v Company, a corporation of Oh Application June 5, 1942, Serial No.

is a divisi October 22, 1937. November 2, 1944,

Claims.

This invention relates to a clutch or drive mechanism and an object thereof is to provide an improved clutch in which the driving element which is preferably in the form of a clutch housing is employed not only as a drive element of the clutch to interconnect the driving and driven members or shafts selectively but also acts as a direct connecting member between a driving member and a second driven member.

Another object of the invention is to provide a clutch having an enclosing housing or casing which is the driving element of the clutch and is driven by a gear or the like and which casing also acts as a direct driving element or connection to another driven element or gear.

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved compact arrangement of parts in which a driving element of a clutch is employed as a direct drive for a gear or the like and also through clutch engaging and disengaging means selectively drives another member as a shaft or the like.

Other objects of the invention will appear hereinafter the novel features and combinations being set forth in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawing,

Fig. 1 is a sectional elevational view through mechanism including the clutch of my invention;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1, looking in the direction of the arrows; and

Fig. 3 is a view taken on the line 33 of Fig. 1,

looking in the direction of the arrows.

' This application is a division of my application, Serial No. 445,834, filed June 5, 1942, entitled Loading machine, which in turn is a division of my application, Serial No. 170,426, filed October 22, 1937, for a Loading machine both of which applications are now abandoned.

In the accompanying drawing I have only illustrated that portion of the loading machine of my applications, above identified, which relates to the clutch herein specifically claimed. For more complete disclosure of one use of this clutch reference is made to t e above mentioned applications. I

Referring particularly to Fig. 1 of the drawing, a driving shaft I 0 driven from any source, as from an electric motor, is provided at its bottom with a beveled gear I l which is in constant mesh with and drives a beveled gear 12. Beveled gear I2 is keyed to a reduced neck 16 of a housing or casing member I3 of a friction type clutch Id. The complete clutch housing is formed by cooperation provided by the housing or casing on of application Serial No.

445,834, which 170,426,

Divided and this application Serial No. 561,543

member 13 and a removable housing plate or cap 15, the outer flange of which is attached to the casing member l3 by machinescrews and the right hand portion of which, as viewed in Fig. 1, is provided with an integral neck I! of reduced diameter. Keyed to the neck I! is a sprocket type gear l8 which drives a chain l9 which in turn may drive any desired member and in the loader of my applications, above identified, this chain drives the discharge conveyor.

The interior cylindrical surfaces of the necks l6 and I1 are of the same diameter and they are provided with bearings 20 and 2i by which the clutch housing I3, i5 is journaled on a driven shaft 22 which is mounted in spaced bearings on a frame 23, one of said spaced bearings being seen at 24; Shaft 22 has a driven gear 25 keyed thereto which may drive any desired mechanism. In the loaders of my applications, above identified, the gear 25 is one gear of a train which drives the traction wheels thereof. It is to be noted that the necks l6 and I! through the bearlugs 20 and 2| have close fit with the shaft 22 so as to provide a substantially complete enclosure for the interior operating mechanism of clutch l4, which shall now be described.

The interior of said clutch i4 includes a driven clutch member 26 which is keyed to the shaft 22. Between the driven clutch member 26 and the driving clutch member or housing i3 is a stack of friction discs 21, alternate ones of which are splined to the external surface of the driven member 26 and the interior surface of the driving member I3 in a manner well understood in the art. Engagement and disengagement of the clutch I4 is effected by clamping or releasing the discs 21. To effect this clamping and releasing action, said discs 21 are clamped between a ring 28 on the housing member l3 and a shiftable ring 29 on the opposite side of said stack of discs 21. Ring 29 is moved into clamping engagement position by a key 30 which extends through a radial slot in the shaft 22 and is slidable axially along said shaft by an operating rod 3| having an elongated keyway 32 therein through which the key 30 extends. Obviously by pulling the rod 3| to the left, as viewed in Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawing, the key 30 will be moved to the left, with the ring 29 thus clamping the discs 21 against each other and efiecting a driving relation between the driving member l3 of the clutch and driven member 26 thereof. By releasing the rod 3| the discs 21 will respond automatically to disengage said clutch l4.

From the above description it is obvious that the clutch ll provides an engageable or disengageable drive between the driving shaft l and/ 'or the driving gear l2 and the driven shaft 22.

Obviously the clutch housing member I8 is an essential part of this driving member. Furthermore, the clutch housing l3, provides a direct positive driving connection from the driving shaft l0 and/or gear i2 to the driven gear or sprocket l8. This is a second function of the housing member l3. In addition, the members I3, have a third function in that they cooperate to provide a substantially complete enclosure for the clutch discs 21 as well as the clutch operating mechanism 29, 80, etc. Whenever the shaft I0 is supplied with power and rotated it is obvious that the driven sprocket gear 18 rotates with it and this is true regardless of the direction of rotation of the shaft Ill. On the other hand, the driven shaft 22 is or is not rotated with the driving shaft in, depending upon whether the clutch i4 is in its engaging or disengaging position.

Obviously those skilled in the art may make various changes in the details and arrangement of parts without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the claims hereto appended and I wish therefore not to be restricted to the precise construction herein disclosed.

Having thus described and shown an embodiment of my invention, what I desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. Apparatus of the class described including a driven shaft, means for driving said shaft including a friction clutch mounted on said shaft, said clutch including a driven member connected to drive said shaft, a driving member, operable friction means to effect a selective driving or nondriving relation between said driven member and said driving member, said driving member comprising an enclosing casing portion for said driven member and said friction means and having reduced neck portions closely adjacent said shaft and surrounding said shaft and located on opposite sides of said enclosing portion, a gear surrounding said shaft and connected to said casing portion on one side thereof to drive said casing, and another gear surrounding said shaft and connected to the other side of said casing portion, said casing portion thereby acting as a direct driving connection between said two gears and also acting as a driving member for the driven member of said clutch. i

2. Drive gearing including a shaft, a driving gear, a clutch mounted on said shaft controlling the driving relation between said driving gear and said shaft, said clutch including a substantially enclosing housing forming a driving member, said driving member having reduced necks on' opposite ends mounting it for rotation on said shaft, said driving gear being connected to said driving member on one side thereof and on one of said necks, and a driven gear connected to said driving member on the other side thereof and on the other of said necks, said driven gear being driven from said driving gear directly through said driving member so they always rotate together, and said shaft being selectively driven or not from said driving gear as determined by said clutch.

3. Drive gearing including a shaft, a driving gear, a clutch mounted on said shaft controlling the driving relation between said driving gear and said shaft, said clutch including a driving 'member, said -driving member having reduced necks on opposite ends mounting it for rotation on said shaft, said driving gear being connected to said driving member on one side thereof and on one of said necks, and a driven gear connected to said driving member on the other side thereof and on the other of said necks, said driven gear being driven from said driving gear directly through said driving member so they always rotate together, and said shaft being selectively driven or not from said driving gear as determined by said clutch.

4. Drive gearing including a shaft, a driving gear, a clutch mounted on said shaft controlling the driving relation between said driving gear and said shaft, said clutch including a substantially enclosing housing forming a driving member, said driving member having reduced necks on opposite ends mounting it for rotation on said shaft, said driving gear being connected to said driving member on one side thereof, and a driven gear connected to said driving member on the other side thereof, said driven gearbeing driven from said driving gear directly through said driving member so they always rotate together, and-said shaft being selectively driven or not from said driving gear as determined by said clutch.

5. Drive gearing including a shaft, a driving gear, a clutch mounted on said shaft controlling the driving relation between said driving gear and said shaft, said clutch including a driving member, said driving member having reduced necks on opposite ends mounting it for rotation on said shaft, said driving gear being connected to said driving member on one side thereof, and a driven gear connected to said driving member on the other side thereof, said driven gear being driven from said driving gear directly through said driving member so they always rotate together, and said shaft being selectively driven or not from said driving gear as determined by said clutch.

N D. LEVIN. 

